Shel

I hadn't told anyone what my mother had told me. Not even Minmin. It wasn't that I was trying to hide it, I just couldn't voice it. Not yet anyway. The six of us - including Warpaint - walked through the corridor to the elevator. Vai's father had left us hours earlier to attend to other things. The Awakened One was still on the shuttle bay mainly because he was too big to go anywhere else, but also to try and reach out to his people again. Despite his protests and arguments with Esther, deep down I thought the Awakened One agreed with everything Esther said but couldn't admit it as he would be betraying his own people.

The captain had called us moments before and requested our presence on the bridge. So many things went through my mind. What had the Gathering Council said to Captain Axa? Had they only wanted a status report or had there been more to it? My father's ship and the other missing G.E. ships had been retrofitted with war weaponry. Would the K'thaktra ships and Brist ships the Corruption had also be retrofitted? Would the Gathering Council decide all the G.E.F. should be retrofitted with such weapons?

We got on the elevator in silence each of us lost in our own thoughts.

"We did well out there," Owen broke the silence.

We all looked at him a little stunned at the enthusiasm in his voice after all we had learned today. My father had attacked the ship my mother was on. The RedNova was captured and her crew dead. Vai's father had almost been taken by the enemy. We found out Brist didn't have the light and would have no real way to defend themselves against the Corruption.

"You did," Warpaint said proudly. "You all did well."

"Don't encourage him, Warpaint," Vai said.

"I thought you wanted me to encourage him more, sir."

"Yes. You should encourage me more," Owen said. "Look. I know many things happened today, but we fought them off. We kept them from destroying our ships and stopped Lieutenant Commander Ma'amaloa's kidnapping. It's true we lost the RedNova, but that wasn't us. Us in this elevator - we did well today."

A small smile came to Esther's lips. "We did do well today," she said quietly.

"We did," Minmin said more enthusiastically.

"I guess," Vai said.

"You especially did excellent, sir," Warpaint said. He placed one of his metal hands on Vai's shoulder.

"Well," Owen said, "let's not single anyone out. We all did excellent."

I couldn't join in their self praise. Today I found out my father choked my mother. My heart tore and tumbled down and down. My stomach churned in violent torrents. My eyes stung as moisture welled up in them. I turned away from all of them before they could see. I clenched my jaws tight until the moisture went away. The elevator doors opened. I followed everyone else as we stepped out onto the bridge deck.

"Vai," I said. It was the first word I had said for at least an hour. They all turned to look at me as the elevator door slid shut behind me. "What was the name of the K'thaktra that beat you on Mars and tried to put the Corruption inside you?"

Vai stiffened. "Why do you ask?"

But I didn't answer. Mainly because I was having a difficult time keeping my face clear of emotion and if I spoke I was afraid the emotion would come through on my face. My mother had mentioned a name to me. A name we had both thought sounded familiar. I needed Vai to confirm it.

"Thrissko," Vai said. "Now tell me why you ask."

"He was there," I said, "with my father when they invaded the RedNova." I tried to step away. I didn't want to say more. If I said more, my tears might show.

Vai grabbed my arm. "Thrissko was there? With Captain Svolun? On the RedNova? Your dad didn't stay on the Armstar?"

"Now isn't the time," I tried to divert him. "The captain is expecting us." But he wouldn't let go of my arm.

"Shel," he said.

Vai had no idea that he sometimes exuded the same commanding air that his father did. Now was one of those times.

"My mom said they argued. Thrissko told my dad that he wasn't in charge anymore."

"If the captain isn't in charge, then who is?" Minmin asked.

"The Gathering chain of command wouldn't really matter to the Corruption would it?" I said.

"I never thought about it," Minmin said quietly.

"You're not telling me that Thrissko is in charge?" Vai asked. "He's our age."

"I don't know," I said. "Ultimately he listened to my dad, but I suspect that isn't always the case."

There was silence as Vai looked down at the floor. The rest of our friends looked from me to Vai expectantly.

"What will you do if you see him again?" I asked Vai.

"I don't know," Vai said. He looked up from the floor to each of our faces. "I never thought he'd leave Mars. Never would I have thought he would be on the same ship as your dad. I wasn't sure he was a friend when I was still on Mars. He was just someone to spend my time with. That was what I thought at that the time, but having time to reflect, he was my friend. He was my only friend on Mars. And I think I was his only friend."

"But he beat you until you were almost dead," Owen protested.

"He wouldn't have done that before the Corruption took him," Vai said. "It isn't easy for K'thaktra to make friends on human colonies. I will try to heal him. I will give him his life back."

"What if he doesn't want it?" Esther asked.

"The people that Vai have healed from the Corruption have only been grateful," Owen said.

"Yes," Esther said, "but there might be anomalies. You've seen the new propaganda vids the Corruption have been sending out. They are trying to convince people that we are the enemies and they are the allies. They promise peace and happiness. They don't tell people they will lose their free will to obtain that faux happiness."

"The council have their own vids countering the Corruption," Owen said. "And they hype us up really well."

I wasn't sure how I felt about being a symbol against the Corruption. Minmin and Owen were the only ones out of us 5 that really seemed to embrace that position.

"There was a little human girl with Thrissko," I said.

Vai's dark brows furrowed together and he shook his head. "I don't know of a little - " His brown eyes widened. "Did she have a knife?"

I nodded.

"I don't know who she is," Vai said, "but she was there at the tailor shop when Thrissko beat me. The Corruption really have a little child fighting for them?"

"So my mom tells me," I said.

"Sick bastards," Owen muttered under his breath.

We stood in silence before Vai finally said, "We should continue to the bridge. We are late now."

They all stepped away, but I found it impossible to move my feet. "He choked my mom," I whispered. I hadn't consciously meant to say it. It just came out.

They turned around to face me. Vai's face looked angrier than I had ever seen it. "Thrissko? I'll kill him."

"No," I said. "My dad."

The anger washed away from Vai's face as they all looked at me with surprise.

"It would be almost impossible for him to kill her that way," Esther said quietly in a way that was supposed to be comforting but wasn't.

"He wasn't trying to kill her," I said. It didn't change the fact that she had bruises on her neck as a result of my dad's actions. I hated him. But I still loved him. If it was possible, I wanted my old dad back.

"But she got away and she is all right," Owen said in that same tone that was supposed to be comforting.

"He kissed her and pushed her out to space before the ship jumped away," I said. They stood there staring at me. A tear finally spilled onto my cheek. "I don't know if I should hate him for hurting her or love him for saving her."

Minmin was the first to move as she came and wrapped her small, furry arms around me. Owen quickly did the same. Then Esther. Vai came beside me and wrapped all of us in a hug with his long arms. This wasn't what I had expected, but I welcomed it. Warpaint approached Vai from behind and wrapped all of us in an even bigger hug. My tear quickly dried. At least I wasn't alone.

I noticed the guards at the door of the bridge for the first time. They stared right at us until they caught me looking at them, then they both quickly looked away as if something else held their attention.

"We should go in," I said. They unwrapped themselves from me. Owen led the way onto the bridge.

Minmin received a call right as we entered the bridge. It was surprising that she answered it in front of the captain and everyone until Bars's image was projected through her volo. Apparently she would drop everything for him.

"What a relief. You're all right," Bars said.

"I'm fine," Minmin said in that sweet voice that I only heard her use when speaking with Bars.

"I can't talk long," he said. "We were in the middle of filming when I heard. I just had to make sure you are all right. I'll message you later." He ended the call.

"So are you and Bars dating?" a female Starwatcher at the science station asked.

A male Starwatcher at the communications station frowned at her.

"Oh no," Minmin said quickly. "He has kept it strictly friendly." The disappointment was clear in her voice.

"Well," the female Starwatcher said, "as a member of his official fanclub, I'd just like to say I would approve if you did start dating. Although, I would be a little jealous if I'm being completely honest. But there would be no one else worthy of him than our very own light specialist."

"Jealous?" the male Starwatcher asked. "Of what? You're dating me."

"So," the female Starwatcher replied, "what does that have to do with anything?"

His furry eyebrows raised at her in disbelief.

"This is not the time or place to be discussing your dating life or anyone's dating life," Captain Axa's voice reprimanded.

The two Starwatchers mumbled, "Sorry, Captain," and turned back to their stations.

"Sorry," Minmin said quietly.

"Next time, don't answer calls when you are supposed to be in an official meeting with me," the captain said. Minmin nodded. "Good work today. All of you," the captain addressed us. "You have certainly proven your titles once again as light specialists. The Gathering Council has requested changes in our schedules and I've agreed. It seems that the human and K'thaktra colonies are not pleased that Vai isn't visiting them to heal their families of the Corruption. Especially the human colonies seeing as you are one of their own. We have agreed to change our schedules to accommodate them."

Vai nodded when the captain paused for his response.

"Good," she said. "The Lieutenant Commander has told me that the Brist don't seem to have the light. The three Brist will remain on board and we will protect them - and any other Brist you may heal in the future. The Gathering Council is now convinced that the entire Brist homeworld has been taken over by the Corruption. It is safe to assume any Brist or Brist ship is now with the enemy.

"The council has also decided we must try to go on the offense instead of always on the defense. We need to find the miasmids homeworld - if they even have a homeworld. We will strike them at their center."

"Can we win with such an attack?" Esther asked. "Those of us with the light are still highly outnumbered by the Corruption."

"The light is not our only weapon," Captain Axa said. "We won the war against the K'thaktra because of our newly developed system at the time - the Aether field. We have since learned even more about the Aether field, have made weapons from it as well as shields. We will use all at our disposal. Find out from the Awakened One if he knows their homeworld. If he doesn't, you are now tasked - in addition to your other duties - of finding their home."